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BRANDING BRAND ELWOOD VICTORIA AUSTRALIA LOGO DESIGN BRAND CREATION PACKAGING DESIGN
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Walk me through your process for a conceptual project! Do you set out knowing it could become a pitch, or does that come later?
I dont really pitch to anyone but myself and the universe, I day dream and conjure up ideas I have when I’ve been running or when my head is racing with ideas in quiet moments or from dreams, its a relentless distraction that got me in trouble in my youth but is productive in life. I share for the exercise of it and the love of realising and reviewing my concept into the world to little or no likes lol (but many saves and enquiries so someones looking) then im contacted by people to create either exactly what ive imagined or collaborate with them on new brands. Im a big believer in listening to your spirit or inner self when you visualise an idea as cooky as that sounds…”god sent me a waffle brand” may be the name of my memoir one day.
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Can you name a project that started as a concept and turned into a real client relationship? What was that conversation like when the brand reached out?
That’s how all of my work starts but notably the relationship with Dropout company, Connor Blakley contacted me some time ago and I did some work with him on Bronco and Jams and tbh I didn’t really take him seriously at the time being a youngster without a brand out there yet ,but he has more than proven to be an absolute capitalist force of nature and that’s what my concepts need to become realisations and not wasted to the ether, we currently have a few in the pipeline to be launched soon which is exciting. I want every product in the store to look back at me with my own creative. When I walk through the isles of the stores in Australia I see legendary typographer Keith Morris looking back at me, what a beautiful legacy to have. read more...
Early in the process, I proposed the name Sashet™, a distinctive twist on the familiar word “sachet.” The name felt playful, memorable, and inherently connected to the product format, while providing a strong foundation for a larger brand story.
From the outset, my creative vision was to position Sashet™ within a neo-nostalgic world. Rather than borrowing cues from traditional sports nutrition, the brand would draw inspiration from iconic consumer products, classic soft drinks, convenience-store culture, and the colourful optimism of past decades. The goal was not to create a retro brand, but to reinterpret familiar cultural references through a contemporary lens, making hydration feel exciting, accessible, and fun.
Together [with founders Taryn O’Donnell and Rob Tucker] we built a brand world that balances nostalgia and modernity, function and emotion. From the distinctive yellow colour palette and bold typography to the flavour-led packaging system and playful tone of voice, every element was designed to create an immediate connection with consumers while standing apart from category conventions.
The digital experience was developed with the same collaborative spirit. I created the original website creative...read more...
How did you become designer ?
I guess as a kid it starts that you're the one that can draw and are drawn to colours and colouring books a bit more than the others. Then it becomes more about seeing how lettering, patterns and colours relate in wall papers, billboards and sign writing.
I was born at the end of 1980 so digital graphics were only being born so I grew up the same time as the technology, when I was misbehaving in computer class I found Microsoft paint and loved the mess free aspect of digital art, In careers class I found a university course that was “computer mediated art” and as a literal person that description seemed to fit perfectly.
Like most designers it’s been up and down and never a straight road, self doubt and domestic life got in the way a lot in my 20’s and recovering from the trauma of growing up in a dysfunctional home but by my 30’s particularly late 30’s seems to be the “idgaf, let’s just do this” era, which I am enjoying.
How would you define your vision of design, your style ?
Kind of sporty and retro/random or silly and weird, I don’t like to fit specific categories, I seem to have always adored certain things and loathed others, it’s always been extremes which in life alienates people but in design draws them in. I was taught to establish my own concrete style and stick to it and I see many designers like that but I could never commit to an aesthetic and limit myself like that and I also don’t like being told what to do “draw cute flowers and be the famous “flower girl” “ no thanks, I’d rather be unpopular and have freedom.
I dream of having a logo in an old dusty logo reference book like my hero’s Carolyn Davidson with the Nike Swoosh, Ruth Keddar with the original google wordmark and Margaret Calvert who you need to google lol.
I feel like great design is born from an individual visionary or partnership solving a problem or playing with colour and form rather than boardroom tables of “creative” teams for which most aren’t creative and just playing the “survival of the meanest” game. These agencies and teams lead to cliche mediocre designs that work temporarily but ultimately ruin some of my favourite brands with unnecessary rebrands.
I guess my style ethos is...read more...
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